Make sure your emails get read

November 3, 2014

Email is now an intrinsic part of our daily lives. From what was once a novelty in some respects has become a dominant form of communication.

Now, everything requires an email , which is why thousands of emails flood our inboxes on a weekly, or even a daily basis. Most of us feel that our email inbox is a cluttered mess of different messages desperately trying to get our attention.

As a result, some people use their email provider’s tools so they can stay on top of their emails . Others, on the other hand, simply ignore what’s sent to them, making most emails meaningless.

However, email is an important tool for sending information, especially marketing communications , so how can we make sure that our emails get read and not ignored/deleted like so many others?

Don’t trigger spam filters

So much email is riddled with spam , so email providers are on high alert to overcome this threat. This makes it more difficult for genuine emails to get through spam filters.

When you remove the human element from an email , it will often be perceived in a negative fashion. If people think an email has been sent by a machine, it is more likely to get ignored.

By taking the time to refer to the recipient by name and engage them directly, it gives them more of an incentive to engage with your message. Also, if you can quickly tell the recipient how you can make their lives easier, they will be more inclined to learn more.

However, don’t get too familiar with recipients and act like they’re your best friends. Always remember that you are sending business emails to business customers/contacts!

Pay attention to the time of day

Everyone has email usage patterns, where we look at and respond to emails during certain peak hours. Getting your message to someone’s inbox when they are actively emailing gives you a better chance of being seen.

For example, business leaders tend to check their email early in the morning or late at night as they are often busy with meetings during the day. If you don’t get a response from someone after a week, try emailing them again, but at a different time of day.

Get to the point quickly

Don’t waffle at the start of an email . It will simply bore the recipient. Get straight to it immediately and use as few words as possible to get your message across.

If your email is too long, it will be scanned so quickly that there is virtually no chance that your actual reason for emailing the recipient is going to be seen.

Be clear about what you are asking for

An email must have a goal or a desired action you want the recipient to take. If they don’t know what that is, they are not likely to respond.

Make sure you specifically mention what the call to action is, whilst making it as polite as possible.

Choose the best subject line

Subject lines often do not have as much thought behind them as the rest of an email’s content. If it is too generic, it is more likely to get skimmed over by a recipient.

It is best to avoid subject lines such as:

Introduction.

Greetings from Elliott.

Following up.

Great meeting you.

These could basically come from anyone and won’t stand out in someone’s inbox. It is better to use something like:

We shook hands at the Jones Business event last night.

Introduction for Person 1 and Person 2 to connect.

You won’t read another email like this today.

Something similar to these subject lines will more likely grab a recipient’s attention and look different to anything else they might receive.